Written in the same erratic print as the Zodiac's previous letters, it gave the details of Stine’s murder and was accompanied by a bloody scrap of Stine’s shirt. Three days after the fourth known Zodiac killing, the 1969 murder of taxi driver Paul Stine, the San Francisco Chronicle received a letter claiming the crime. "It is more fun than killing wild game in the forest because man is the most dangerous animal of all." "I like killing people because it is so much fun," it read. Several days later, high school teacher Donald Harden and his wife, Bettye, were able to solve the cipher. Beginning, “Dear Editor: This is the Zodiac speaking,” it also described the murders in detail and taunted police for not having been able to crack his code or catch him. While Bay Area police departments, with the support of the FBI, worked feverishly to track down the killer, another letter soon arrived at the San Francisco Examiner. The letters were also each accompanied by one part of a three-part cipher that he claimed contained his identity. The killer went on to threaten further attacks if the letters weren’t printed on the front page of the papers.Įach letter closed with a symbol consisting of a circle with a cross through it, in what would come to be known as the Zodiac Killer’s symbol. Beginning, “Dear Editor: I am the killer of the 2 teenagers last Christmas at Lake Herman,” the letters contained details from the Zodiac Killer’s murders that only the killer could have known. On August 1, 1969, the San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco Chronicle and Vallejo Times-Herald each received an identical handwritten letter in an envelope without a return address. The mystery surrounding the murders has been the subject of numerous books and movies, including director David Fincher's acclaimed 2007 feature Zodiac. Despite intensive investigations, no one was ever arrested for the crimes and the case remains open. He taunted police and made threats through letters sent to area newspapers from 1969 to 1974, before abruptly ceasing communication. The self-proclaimed Zodiac Killer was directly linked to at least five murders in Northern California in 19 and may have been responsible for more.
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